Dramatic title, but whatever. I am so incredibly tired of spending time and money
every damn year taking care of mulch beds that go all the way around my house -- especially since I largely don't get any enjoyment out of taking care of them.
Here is my best bet at drawing this to scale (mulch beds in green):
Here is a picture of the house (from a couple years ago when everything was still alive):
Right now, the corners are all taken care of (nice big bush on left, dogwood tree on right). I am going to put hostas on each side of the house. This leaves the front and back yards.
Things to Consider:
0. Looking for two types of plants each for front and back, and just alternating them. For instance, in that picture of the front, probably 3 plants to the left of the porch and 5 to the right, just alternating all of them.
0a. That back right behind the back porch gets almost no light, so alternative suggestions for over there is fine.
1. Highest priority is having the right plants facing the right direction. I screwed this up when I tried putting in other plants two years ago and everything is already beyond dead.
2. Second highest priority is low maintenance. I am going to have all the plants in the open with no canopy -- just rain water should be good. I don't want to re-plant or take care of anything for 15-20 years. Minimal trimming (1-2x a year) is fine.
3. I am in NE Ohio. Climate is very moderate but the soil sucks. These plants need to be durable.
4. I have about $350 in Home Depot gift cards and am considering getting landscaping rocks. My parents got them on their house in the 1990s and they are still there and look good. Not sure what color to get or what type is the best bang for my buck.
5. I like color contrasts, so that would be a plus.
I think that about covers it. Any and all ideas would be great.